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He shouldn't have lost control. He should have accepted what had happened and tried to move on.

Instead, he had sought solace in death.

He was a fool.

Ragna reflected on Hyperion's words. He didn't deny that the Omnimon was right. Regardless of the pain in his heart, he had to endure. He was an Avenger.

And now, he had three more souls to avenge.

Rai, Karasu and Valra. Three comrades, destroyed by Imego.

He reflected back. The Avengers had been formed to avenge those torn away from the world by Imego and the Dramon Empire. At first, those people had only been Jager, Tharor, Oberon and... Goliath.

Now, there were more to avenge. But one name would never be avenged, becuase he didn't deserve it after his crimes.

Goliath had betrayed them all.

It occured to Ragna that it was Goliath's fault Valra was dead.

If he hadn't betrayed them, they could have wiped out the Three Great Dramon...

No. Imego would have ascended to Paladin and Kaiser Mode regardless.

It was fate that had woven these powers into Imego's tangled threads of data, now the Avengers would be the fingers to unpick those threads.

He narrowed his eyes. Then he made himself a promise.

All who Imego had harmed, or destroyed, would be avenged. Regardless of the Kaiser Mode, Imego's now-beyond Sovereign power, he would have to fall in the end.

After all, the group facing him had been formed with one purpose, banded together in the wake of death and misery with one goal in hearts and souls: to end that one Digimon's life and punish him for the deaths and pain.

And now that time had finally come. They had taken Imego down twice before. Arahon had done so once, but had spared the paladin of the Dramon Empire.

Then Karasu had delivered the near-fatal blow at the Paleozoic Sovereignty.

No, a third time too. Genesis and Karasu striking together, had ended the Paladin Mode's existence, only to have Imego cheat them of their justice by evolving to Kaiser Mode.

Maybe Kaiser Mode was beyond Sovereign Level. Maybe death was inevitable for them.

But they were Avengers. They would face him with everything they had until either he or they were defeated and destroyed...

Strom, while waiting for his commanders' answers, went into a quick tangent of thought. He heard his friend Braon mention the Paleozoic Sovereignty and that they would be assisting them during the final battle. He knew that Ranney would be there, and frankly, he wasn't sure how he felt about it. Only if he saw him up close would he know for sure if his burning grudge still remained.

Strom quickly looked over to his comrade, who seemed to be standing away from the others in deep thought.

"Will you be okay, Ragna? Able to kick some dragon and leonine *ss without getting yourself killed?" the dinosaur asked with half-hearted grin forming on his snout.

The six Olympians had come together: Apollo, Artemis, Poseidon, Ares, Athena, and Hermes. Together with Arahon and the Avengers, they were prepared to face down Imego while the rest of the alliance, under the command of Braon, Boagrius, and Valdor's three angels, focused on the Dramon Empire's military. Arahon had taken to meditation in an attempt to restore his body, mind, and spirit, and focus the full power of the Alpha-Gain Force. Whisps of data and code flowed around Arahon as he meditated, floating in the air in Lotus position. The rest of the Avengers were on a razor's edge: tense, focused, and agitated. Ajax and Onaga sharpened their weapons. Valkur ran diagnostics on his systems. Hyperion stared off at the horizon, brimming with rage.

"It's time," Arahon whispered as he stood. "The data song sings to me through the Alpha-Gain Force. Imego is on his way with the whole of the Dramon Empire's military might behind him. We have but precious few minutes until we see them over the horizon."

"Then let's get ready," said Ajax. "Remember, we need to separate Imego from his army. Our forces can handle them. What we can't handle are Sovereign-level attacks being fired off indiscriminately into us. Avengers. Olympians. It'll be our job to make sure Imego doesn't have that opportunity. We know he'll have Goliath and Gotungir with him. Hyperion and I will take them while the rest of you concentrate on Imego. This is it. There's no holding back, no second chances: you go in at maximum power, fully evolved. We don't get a do-over for this one."

"I summon the power of Fanglongmon," Arahon called out. "I summon the power of the Vanguard. I summon the Ultimate Warblade, King Dragon Sword!" The sword of Ouryuken suddenly flashed into existence and Arahon wrapped his hands around the weapon's hilt. Two golden, feathery wings emerged from his back, and he raised the weapon, spinning it expertly through the air.

"I summon the Heart of Witchenly, bringeth to me the holy key, that shineth bright and thus transform, through crimson light to crimson form!" Ajax thrust his right hand to the sky, and a fist-sized sphere of blazing red appeared in his palm. The sphere suddenly exploded and its light washed over Ajax. "Crimson Evolution!" Ajax called out. The crimson light swirled over him. His armor became stronger and changed to a deep red hue as ten white wings emerged from his back. "Gallantmon Crimson Mode!"

"In fearful day, in raging night, with strong hearts full our souls ignite. When the world seems lost, when there is no light, look to the stars. For hope burns bright!" Valkur and Onaga chanted together. "Ancient DNA Digivolution"! they called out in unison. Light enveloped the two warriors before merging them together. Their forms broke down into innumerable specks of data and swirled around the bright light before massing back together and reforming into one single Digimon. "Susanoomon!"

"How do we draw him off?" Genesis asked.

"Leave that to me." It was Valdor. He spread his wings wide, and raced forward, a brilliant bolt of holy energies that seared across the golden-red expanse of the dawn sky. He collided with Imego before the Kaiser could even comprehend what was happening. He drove Imego through the air and away from the ranks of the Dramon forces. The Olympians followed close behind.

Hyperion and Ajax lifted into the air and set out after Goliath and Gotungir to cripple the command structure of the Dramon: without leaders, they would be far less effective. Arahon led the Avengers, surfing on the trail of energies left in Valdor's wake. The great holy bird had carried Imego far from the battle, towards a large cluster of islands. That was where the battle would be decided.

The fate of the world hung in the balance.

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

Ragna and Osiris flew alongside the other Avengers and the Olympians, ready to confront Imego and finally end the war once and for all.

Ragna felt hatred seething through his veins as he saw the dark armoured Imego, locked in a pitched battle with Valdor.

Osiris saw Ragna's muscles tense, and started to feel uneasy. He knew how willing to throw away his own life Ragna was now that Valra was gone.

Ragna felt one thing flow through him: rage. It overwhelmed all else, driving him beyond the limits of his regular form to give himself the best chance of overwhelming Imego.

"From the depths of the soul, I call forth the ultimate spirit of the Ryu! Through draconic spirit to exalted knighthood, I ascend back to the legacy of Wyvern! X-Evolution!" Ragna called, body exploding like a supernova and a crimson X impaling its points through his limbs as his body shape streamlined, wings splitting, claws lengthening, armour darkening and finally, eyes becoming blood red.

"DYNASMON X!"

Osiris saw the others begin to Digivolve and knew his time had come. He thought back to his previous two Digivolutions to the ultimate power within him, knowing that each time need had inspired his Ancient Evolution.

He saw all those fallen to Imego, those whose souls were no more or were transformed: Tharor, Jager, Valra, Rai, Karasu, Goliath, Oberon, the Digimon Sovereign, the Three Great Dramon...

The souls reached out to him, pleading to be avenged, to make Imego suffer for his crimes...

He was happy to oblige.

"Through the calls of the long-departed, I release the ultimate Evolution!" Osiris chanted "Souls of the numberless dead, your time for vengeance has finally come! Wrap me in the armour of the God of Death so I may fulfil this great purpose! Ancient Evolution!"

Darkness wrapped around his body, the voices of those now gone pleading with him for vengeance.

They all spoke, even those Dramon among them. The Three Great Dramon and the Digimon Sovereign spoke, asking him for Imego's destruction...

Valra was there, speaking in soft tones for him to keep Ragna alive, to keep the Dynasmon safe.

"I will," Osiris said, answering them all "Imego shall be ended this day!" There were resounding cheers and then the voice of Anubis Teth-Adam spoke.

"Osiris Anubismon, you have called for the aid of the dead. I, Anubis Teth-Adam, lord of the dead, shall grant you this power to aid the end of the imbalance. So I decree, so it is."

"Thank you, Anubis Teth-Adam."

The darkness impaled him in a thousand places, tearing away his skin and replacing it with frozen, unbreakable Obsidian Digizoid, the hallmark of those wielding the darkness. He shifted onto all fours, his new golden wings of metal rising over him as the death mask face of AncientSphinxmon covered his own. His tail swayed from side to side and his eyes gleamed as the darkness faded to leave him behind.

"ANCIENTSPHINXMON!"

Ragna and Osiris soared side-by-side, the Ancient Warrior alongside the knight of dragons. They were now part of something immense and their power helped to shape it.

Ragna roared and Osiris added his voice to the great cry, hearing the dead speak through his voice, his roar intensified by the voices of hundreds.

Imego turned, raising the Twilight Sword to intercept the first attacks.

The dragon mouth on his chest opened, a sphere of pure darkness forming within.

"EXA CRUSHER!" the Kaiser Mode Imperialdramon, the Paladin of the Darkness, roared.

The sphere exploded forth with power beyond even that Hyperion's Supreme Cannon could muster. The blast made a terrifying shriek as it tore through the air towards Ragna and Osiris

"Dragon Thrower!" Ragna called.

"Dark Roar!" Osiris added. A jet of blazing crimson exploded from Ragna's palm as Osiris unleashed a sphere of darkness from his maw. The two combined attacks struck Imego's Exa Crusher and struggled to contain the vicious, Sovereign level force of the blast.

"Dragon Howl!" Imego called, spreading his arms wide and unleashing sanguine energy blasts from his body in an infinitely more powerful parody of his Hyper Prominence.

Distracted by their focus on Imego's Exa Crusher, Ragna and Osiris were unable to deal with the Dragon Howl and were struck heavily by the searing bursts of dark energy.

Osiris's Obisidian Digizoid armour helped reduce the force of the impacts, but Ragna was nowhere near as protected and screamed as the blasts seared into him, tearing jagged holes in his wings.

He started to fall, roaring in pain and frustration, memories of his life and the moments he'd had with Valra flashing past his eyes.

"I CAN'T DIE!"

(I love chants, lol. Just get me started on Synchro Chants from Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's... but yeah, I had to do Digivolution Chants for Ragna and Osiris.)

(This calls for Immediate Music. Thanks, Kamotz for introducing it to me.)

Strom rushed to his fellow Avenger's aid. The Spinomon's feet pounded hard on the earth as he dashed forwards. He could feel the earth quaking beneath him. Strom saw an injured Ragna plummeting to the ground as he ran.

"RAGNA!" he roared, taking from a run to a jump. The dinosaur reached out his claws and caught Ragna in mid-fall.

Strom landed on the ground and saw that Imego had turned his attention to he and Ragna.

"Stupid reptile," Imego spat, preparing to attack.

"RrrrrrrrrrRAAAGH!" bellowed Strom, remembering all that Imego had taken from them. He remembered the torture he had to endure when captured by the Dramon. His blood was boiling and nostrils flaring. "BLUE PROMINANCE!"

A sapphire beam of energy, larger than Strom himself, was released from his roaring mouth. The attack appeared to envelope Imego, who didn't even try to dodge or block the attack. As it hit him, the blue prominance attack merely seemed to cone out from Imego. The Spinomon released the last bit of burning plasma from his mouth and watched the attack dissapate.

Much to his dismay, Imego remained in his place with a smug grin. "My turn... Exa Crusher!"

Strom's eyes widened as a mass of power came barreling towards him and Ragna. He took the Avenger and clumsily rolled out of the way. The initial attack missed him, but he was caught in the intense splash damage. The dinosaur shielded his unwilling passenger with his body and he was thrown, skidding along the ground. Upon stopping, he grunted and let go of Ragna. "I hope we're close to even now..." said the Spinomon with a half smile.

"We're even," Ragna chuckled softly, standing with a groan and spreading his torn wings "Strom... thanks for what you've done. Thanks for saving me, and thanks for comforting me when Valra died. Let's put the past behind us, and move towards our future! I'll take Imego on in close range, while you try to keep him pinned with your attacks. Your strength isn't any good if you can't reach Imego."

With that, he beat down with his four wings and ascended, aiming for Imego, who raised the Twilight Sword to meet Ragna's charge.

"I hope you're more of a challenge than your pathetic lover!" the Kaiser of Dramon laughed, raising the Twilight Sword above his head, the twisted and corrupted parody of the holy Omni Sword burning with crimson aurora.

"BREATH OF WYVERN!" Ragna roared, his body suddenly ablaze with blue aura "DRAGON THROWER!" His claws took on a crimson glow as his energy surged into them.

"This trick again?!" Imego snarled "the one you used on Ruatemn? It might work on him, but it will not end my reign! TWILIGHT SWORD!"

As Ragna was about to strike him, Imego swung the blazing Twilight Sword down. The two forces met with a colossal shockwave, Ragna's combined attacks striking Imego's Sovereign level power.

"You took my love from me!" Ragna roared "now I shall take your very life as your debt! You owe me, Imego!"

"I owe you NOTHING!" Imego snarled, lashing out with his armoured foot and penetrating even the blazing aurora of Ragna's Breath of Wyvern, strijking the Dynasmon and drawing a gasp of pain .

"You owe me EVERYTHING! You tore her away from me for your own selfish aims! Now you shall know my righteous justice! You believe yourself immune to our laws and decrees, but now I shall prove one thing...!"

"YOU ARE NOT! YOU SHALL BE PUNISHED, BE IT BY MY HAND OR ANOTHER'S!"

"Then punish me, betrayer! You commit high treason by attacking me, the lord of this very world!"

"I never swore fealty to your Empire, nor do I ever wish to!" Ragna replied "you stole my happiness, my joy! Now I shall take all I have left, anger, pain, grief, and use it to end you! I am a knight of dragons, Imego! But I am not your knight! I am the knight of the Digimon Sovereign, of the Harmonious Republic, of the very Digital World!"

"Then perish in your treachery!" Imego roared "TWILIGHT SWORD!"

The twisted runes on the blade burned with power and Ragna was struck by crushing force.

He burned as black flames seared through his attack, striking into his flesh on the keen edge of the soul-hungry Twilight Sword and hurling him away from the black Paladin.

Imego let out a laugh of triumph before opening the dragon mouth on his chest once more.

Energy crackled within, forming another sphere of darkness...

"EXA CRUSHER!" he commanded. The energy exploded out of the maw, ready to strike Ragna and crush the knight...

Then there was a flare of darkness "DARK ROAR!"

A sphere of crackling darkness, this one with noble and true intentions guiding it, struck the Exa Crusher and hurled it off course, the blast exploding against the ocean surface instead of on Ragna.

Osiris glided into view, majestic in the garb of AncientSphinxmon. He let out a fierce roar, supplemented by the fury of the dead.

"You," Imego hissed "the Ancient with something to prove. You were with Jager and Tharor at the beginning... how fitting you stand in the armour of legends at this, the end of your era and the beginning of my reign."

"You were never destined to rule," Osiris answered "you were never meant to become like this. You twist the fabric of the Digital World, Imego! If you continue on this path, you will unleash terrors far greater than you are!"

"You lie."

"It matters not," Osiris growled "you end your life this day. I am strengthened by the power of all you destroyed for this power, Imego. The Three Great Dramon are with me. The Sovereign are with me. Every single soul whose life ended for your empire is with me. You cannot match the power of Death. And in this, I am the God of Death, clad in armour of souls and armed with the wills of the departed!"

"Then match me, God of Death!" Imego laughed "for I am God of All! Let the war begin! DRAGON HOWL!" Sanguine energy shot from the tip of the Twilight Sword in a lethal stream...

Osiris leapt away from the swing, before charging forwards and tackling Imego, building a sphere of darkness in his maw.

The paladin was knocked off guard as Osiris reared up and slammed back down, knocking Imego backwards.

"DARK ROAR!" the AncientSphinxmon screamed, unleashing his mighty attack in a blaze of spiritual energy. The blast exploded against Imego, drawing a growl of pain before the smoke cleared to reveal an amazing sight.

Imego had his Twilight Sword blocking the spinning blast of darkness, pushing it back. Much as Hyperion had once reflected Giga Crusher, now Imego spun and swung his blade viciously, granting a crimson aura to the Dark Roar as it hurtled back into Osiris...

"BREATH OF WYVERN!" Ragna called, diving into the Dark Roar and slashing into its core. The sphere exploded, but the diminshed blast was unable to penetrate the rapidly growing flame aurora of Ragna's strongest attack.

Dragon knight and Ancient Warrior stood together once more, opposing the Dark Paladin of the Dramon Empire. Imego sneered and raised his Twilight Sword, ready for battle.

Ragna was cloaked in Breath of Wyvern, rage burning in his eyes.

As for Osiris, rage of hundreds burned within his soul. The two Avengers stood ready as Imego charged, Twilight Sword burning with crimson energy...

No matter what, Ragna vowed in his heart, he would fight until Valra was avenged. Only then would he consider his duty done. He remembered those words all that time ago, himself telling Valra that they had to be strong, even if they were apart.

Now he knew he had to be strong, for their opponent was a power beyond all seen before. Ragna raised his claws, letting a crimson aura burn on them as he channeled energy.

"We are the Avengers," he murmured "we are strong. We will not fall! We will not cower! We will fight! Avengers, assemble!"

And as Ragna spoke the legendary cry, he thought he saw a flicker of fear cross Imego's features...

Ragna's words struck Strom in a way he couldn't explain. He felt relief and a friendship which was previously a bitter scorn and rivalry. A particular line reached out to him. 'Let's put the past behind us, and move towards our future.' Strom thought back to Ranney's betrayal. "...Can I do that?" he wondered. All the horrible things he had said and done to Ragna, and the Avenger was willing to forgive him? "Am I really strong enough to do that?"

The Spinomon snapped out of his trance and heeded Ragna's tactics. Strom got down on all fours and aimed his bladed back at Imego. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Ragna. "The future awaits us, friend... Sonic Slash Rain!"

A volley of deadly blades was hurled at Imego, who easily dodged them, but had to focus on either dodging them or fighting Ragna. He chose the latter. His combat skill was slightly suffering and a few of the supressing blades knicked him.

"Avengers Assemble!" he heard Ragna bellow.

With pride to be called an Avenger, Strom stood upright and ran to the knight's side and charged up his Blue Prominance attack. As he did, he glared at Imego and spoke. "You're going down, you pathetic pile of dramon excrement!"

A second later, Strom sheepishly looked at Ragna. "That wasn't very poetic, was it? Maybe I should leave that stuff to you and Ajax."

"I think Ajax and I are gifted when it comes to rallying speeches," he chuckled "now then. Let's end this! Avengers, we stand together! Now, this war ends TODAY! CHARGE!"

So saying, he hurled himself at Imego, followed closely by Osiris.

Imego readied the Twlight Sword yet again and swung it into Ragna...

He was amazed as the Dynasmon reached out with aurora coated claws and gripped the blade of darkness, wrenching it from his grip and hurling it towards the ocean below with all his legendary strength.

"You shall pay for that!" the Kaiser screamed, hurling himself at Ragna.

"You die today!" Ragna retorted, kicking out viciously and catching Imego in the stomach. However, the Kaiser Mode's strong armour absorbed the blow without any sign of weakening. What followed was an all-out brawl.

Eventually, Imego gained the upper hand. Ragna's strength was incapable of overcoming Imego's sheer endurance and use of attacks. Even the determination to avenge Valra surging through the dragon knight's soul couldn't keep him enduring.

Imego's blows hammered on him like meteors, bruising his whole body. Blood poured from a cut over his eyes, blinding him. His left arm felt twisted, as if Imego had broken it.

Finally, the Kaiser Mode Imperialdramon lashed out with a vicious kick that hurled Ragna away, tossing him to the ground beside Strom. Ragna stood unsteadily, retching blood onto the ground. The world spun around him and his head ached.

He snarled, forcing himself to focus through his pain. Valra's face appeared in his vision and he snarled again, remembering every vow he had sworn.

He would avenge her or die trying.

He stopped retching, standing up and feeling the currents of energy flowing against his claws. He was reminded of Valra's hand in his own.

"You aren't surrendering, are you?" he heard her voice speak.

"Never," he snarled, feeling the energy play over his skin.

He felt something change, an alteration in the energy flow. As he watched, the aura around his claws flowed into a new form, a longsword. The blade shimmered with azure radiance.

"Every knight needs a sword," Valra spoke.

"And so I take up this one," Ragna said, watching the blade become solid "thank you, my love. I shall avenge you."

He turned his gaze back to Imego, raising his new sword.

"I name you... Wyrmflame." The sword shone with azure fire from his Breath of Wyvern.

Ragna beat down with his wings and took flight, ready for battle. Imego saw him coming and felt the energy radiating from thr new blade in the knight's grip.

"It's... that wretch Valra!" he snarled, readying the Twilight Sword.

Then a hail of blades from Strom's Sonic Slash Rain caught him and distracted him for a vital second...

Ragna raised Wyrmflame and felt a pulse of energy flow through the blade.

"Draconis Flame!" he called. Wyrmflame shone with a flame as bright as the sun as Ragna swung it and cut right into Imego's armoured leg.

The Kaiser Imperialdramon roared in pain as Wyrmflame tore into his flesh.

It was impossible. He was invincible, invulnerable. Even that ******* AncientSphinxmon hadn't hurt him.

But now one blow from Ragna's new sword had torn into him, sending flames searing into his data.

"You traitor!" he snarled, lashing down with the Twilight Sword. Ragna raised Wyrmflame and the two blades collided, Digital Runes shining on both. Ragn suddenly read the runes on his new blade, realising what they spelt out: Future.

He felt a rush of wonder, that Valra had passed him this blade from beyond the grave, a blade to bring about the future of the world.

He recalled his speech to Strom: Towards our future.

Now he would bring about that future.

"DRACONIS FLAME!" Ragna roared as Imego called "TWILIGHT SWORD!"

The runes on both blades shone once more, Valra's soul in one blade, the power of the Kaiser Mode in the other.

The forces were balanced.

Neither would back down.

Valra, even when destroyed, would not let Ragna perish. She would fight for him forever. If Imego would aim to destroy her lover, then Imego would be halted by Wyrmflame, a sword forged from data and soul and the legacy of dragons.

And as for Imego, his endless ambition carried with it power too.

The two swords danced, clashing together with showers of sparks and shockwaves of incredible power.

Fire and darkness collided, azure and crimson detonated in bursts of energy too great to be measured. Spirits fought within the swords, forcing their will into the energy of the wielders, the dragon knight and dark paladin.

"Ragna!" Osiris called "you can't match him forever! Let us help you!"

As if to drive home this point, Arahon suddenly appeared behind Imego, swinging the Ouryuken sword in an arc that sparked off of Imego's armour.

"Ultimate Warblade King Dragon Sword!" the Vanguard of Fanglongmon called, swinging his blade once more and this time striking a weak point, making Imego cry out in pain again...

It was madness: sheer, utter, madness. Valdor already lay dead: obliterated by the sheer power unleashed when he and Imego struck the ground of the island. Imego could scarcely find the room to move his wings, nevermind swing his mighty sword. Avenger and Olympian piled onto him with a fury and rage the likes of which he had never seen. Already, Ragna, Strom, Osiris had struck at him with a might like he had never known. They were too much, they were smothering him. He couldn't find his way to...

NO!!!

The might of the Dragon Howl ripped from Imego's body. It plunged itself into all those around him and forced them back and away. Imego needed room to maneuver, and knew that even with the power of the Kaiser Mode at his disposal, he couldn't afford to become careless. Especially with the six Olympians involved. They had to be taken care of first and foremost.

"Exa Crusher!" Imego roared. Power ripped from the open dragon mouth on his chest and slammed into the ground. It scattered the Avengers and gave Imego room to launch up into the air. He then launched a Dragon Howl, a beam of power that swept over and struck each of the Avengers. Imego then turned his wrath upon the Olympians. Ares attacked first. He smashed Imego with a barrage of well-placed punches. But Imego surged through his attack and caught the last punch. The black Kaiser swung his sword, but Ares grabbed his arm and stopped the blow.

Imego laughed and unleashed the Exa Crusher once again. The massive blast struck Ares and sent him flying. Imego moved to strike him down, but Hermes got between them and blocked the slash with his knife.

"Is that what you bring against me?" Imego laughed. "That little knife? You fool!" With but a flick of Imego's wrist, the Twilight Sword shattered Hermes's knife. Imego grabbed the Olympian by the throat and hurled him to the ground. He stood over him and slashed down with the Twilight Sword. But Artemis's halberd blocked the blow. Imego fumed. He kicked Hermes, once again showing the awesome physical power of the Kaiser Mode as Hermes was sent sailing over the ground. Imego then surged forward. He broke Artemis's guard and knocked her to the ground with a vicious backhanded blow. Someone suddenly grabbed him from behind. Apollo had his arms locked around Imego's neck and shoulder. Ares then leapt forward and grabbed his sword arm. In a showing of true martial skill, the war-god Olympian grappled against Imego's arm and forced him to drop his sword.

Outraged, Imego grabbed Ares with that same arm and swung him through the air, smashing him into Athena, who had rushed forward in an attempt to skewer Imego with her own blade. Imego then grabbed Apollo, lifted him over his head, and slammed him to the ground.

"Vortex Penetrate!" Imego turned just in time to dodge Poseidon's attack. He spun and grabbed the mighty trident as it flew through the air. The weapon struggled in his hands as he kept it from returning to Poseidon.

Imego brought the trident over his knee and snapped it in half. He then lashed out with another Dragon Howl. The attack struck Poseidon and knocked him down. The trident ceased its struggling. Imego felt something rushing up behind him so he spun around and extend his arm. Hermes ran full speed right into his elbow and was knocked to the ground. Imego turned and stabbed the back half of the trident deep into Hermes's stomach. He placed his foot on the end of the trident and staked Hermes into the ground. He then brought up the other half of the trident and used it to bash in the Olympian's skull.

"Monster!" Poseidon roared. Imego turned and hurled the trident at him, but the weapon simply returned to its owner's hand. Poseidon rushed Imego with a snarl on his lips, only to find himself skewered on the blade of the Twilight Sword.

"Twilight Sword," Imego whispered. Power exploded from the blade and ripped Poseidon to shreds. Imego then turned and charged Athena. She attempted to ward him off with her giant sword and shield, but the Twilight Sword shred through them like paper. Imego drew his arm back and thrust his fiery claws into her chest, ripping out her digital heart. Ares attacked from behind, but Imego simply turned his sword and stabbed backwards through the heart of the war-god.

"This is all you can bring to bear against me?" he taunted. "Is this it? I'm insulted." He raised his mighty blade as power flowed into it. "Twilight Sword!" he howled. He charged Apollo and Artemis, the only two remaining Olympians, intent on cutting them down as well.

"No!" Arahon shouted. He tacked Imego and knocked him off his feet. He slammed his foot into Imego's sword hand and pinned both hand and sword to the earth beneath him. Arahon held the Ultimate War Blade high and brought it down with all his might. But Imego caught the blade in his free hand. He then wrenched his sword free and aimed its point into Arahon's chest.

"Twilight Sword," Imego snarled. Power exploded from the tip of the sword and seared into Arahon. The black knight was sent flying he landed with a thud as the power of the King Dragon mode began to fade away. His golden wings fluttered and vanished. But with one last heroic roar of effort, Arahon hurled the Ultimate War Blade. The blade struck true, lodging itself in Imego's left shoulder. The black Kaiser let out a roar of pain.

But then the Ultimate War Blade faded away as well, breaking down in to innumerable specks of data.

Arahon slumped forward. He was spent. Imego stalked towards him, sword held high. But Apollo and Artemis would have none of that. They grabbed Imego and pulled him away from the fallen knight. Apollo let loose with his mightiest attack, the Sol Blaster while Artemis struck with her Crescent Hook attack. Imego was engulfed by the powers of the sun and moon, but he let out a roar of defiance.

"I will not fall," Imego snarled. "Not to you!"

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

The Dynasmon dived at the Imperialdramon, readying Wyrmflame. As he fell, Imego swung the Twilight Sword and obliterated Apollo and Artemis's attacks effortlessly.

"This is pathetic," he taunted "I expected more from the great Olympians and the oh-so-mighty Avengers! Can none challenge me?! The great Arahon Alpha has been defeated! Poseidon, Hermes, Athena, Ares, they all have perished! SHOW ME YOUR POWER!"

"We shall!" Osiris roared, voice still filled with the fury of those departed "if you want to feel power, we shall bring our bonds together and use them to strike you down!"

"Bonds?" Imego laughed "BONDS?! You think BONDS will stop me?! Just ask that traitor Ragna how much good BONDS did for him! His precious lover is data now, destroyed in an instant becuase she thought to challenge ME! You cannot face me with BONDS!"

"Tell that to the universe, *******!" Ragna roared "DRACONIS FLAME!" He slashed the glowing Wyrmflame in a mighty arc, slashing into Imego's armour and ripping at the mighty paladin's digital skeleton. Immediately, the flames burning from the Digimon Kana inscribed on the blade seared into Imego's data, but the paladin ignored the burning and turned to face Ragna.

"You just don't stop, do you?!" Imego growled.

"I cannot stop," Ragna hissed "you took that away from me."

"I didn't kill anyone worth anything!" Imego roared "I killed a pathetic insect, unworthy of a dragon like yourself! Like it or not, you are a dragon! Embrace the empire and I will forgive you!"

"NO!" Ragna roared, raising Wyrmflame, the flames on the blade burning brighter in response to his rage "YOU MURDERED HER, IMEGO! VALRA MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN WORTH ANYTHING TO YOU, BUT I LOVED HER!"

"Then you know nothing," Ragna said quietly "you don't know what it feels like to rust someone like that, to care. I cannot explain how it feels. Such a heartless being as you... cannot live in this world. This ends now!"

After shaking off Imego's Dragon Howl, Strom was fueled with an insatiable bloodlust- Imego's blood. Devouring that dramon- armour included- sounded pretty good to him right now. He put himself between Arahon and Imego. The dinosaur noticed Ragna charging Imego. Strom grinned a toothy grin and rampaged Imego's flank.

If Imego dodged or blocked Ragna's attack, he would have his eyes on Ragna. Then the last thing the evil dramon would see was Strom's teeth boring down on his face. He would then have the pleasure of touring his digestive track.

Strom glanced over and saw Ragna getting closer to their mutual target. The Spinomon made sure to approch from Imego's blindspot. He opened his maw, leaned down, and waited for Ragna to strike before his potential meal.

Karmas and Kairi cried in horror as they saw the Olympians get obliterated.

"We must do what we can to stop them!" said Kairi.

Karmas nodded before he lunged forward at Imego, his two axes glowing with icy power. As he roared 'Avalanche Axes!', the Imperialdramon simply swung his arm and slammed it into Karmas' stomach. The Korikkakumon felt something in his torso crack as he fell to the ground.

"Well, now isn't this a little surprise," he muttered before he raised his arm. "Dragon Howl!"

A large beam of energy shot out of Imego hand, straight towards Kairi. The moment that Kairi heard the Imperialdramon call out his attack she stopped and swung her staff around.

"Flame Fox Dance," she calmly said.

Fire erupted from her staff and formed into several fiery foxes. The foxes glared at Imego before they shot off towards the beam closing nearer. As the foxes held back Imego's attack, Kairi felt something inside her start to move.

What on earth is that? she thought as it began to move faster and faster.

Just as it felt as if something was going to burst out of her, Kairi began to glow. As the intensity of the glow began to increase a form began to materialize before her. To her shock as it fully materialized, Kairi realised that it was her previous husband.

"My dear Kairi, I know that I have been dead for a while now. But what you never realised is that I never left you. I have been inside you this whole time, and now it's time that you harness my energy and ascend to a higher form," said the soft voice of the SlashAngemon.

The new Kairi stepped forward, the only difference in her form being her now purple armour and now silver staff. She looked at Imego with intense hatred as Karmas lifted himself up of the ground. He turned towards Kairi and nodded, Kairi nodding back. The pair jumped forward and swung their weapon around.

"Womb Realm Mandala!" roared Kairi.

"Avalance Axes!" roared Karmas.

As Karmas slashed with his axes, Kairi summoned several grey foxes. The foxes swirled around the arcs that Karmas' axes released. Imego watched the two attack zoom towards him, but he simply batted them away. Imego would have killed them there and then, but luckily Ragna had distracted him.

"What can we do Karmas?" Kairi asked. "He just shrugs off out attacks."

"Well we can only keep trying," replied Karmas, "That is if you're up for it."

Kairi nodded before she charged up another Womb Realm Mandala, and Karmas charged up another Avalanche Axes.

There was only fire and darkness, a darkness so think and suffocating that even the light of the fire was drawn into it. Imego was that darkness: a black hole that nothing could escape. He pulled everything around him into an endless abyss of suffering, fear, and pain. He drew into himself gods and monsters; angels and demons; dragons and knights. Nothing was safe.

Artemis struggled to hold up the beaten Arahon as Apollo and Imego went blow-for-blow. It was a desperate gamble, but they needed to buy some time to regroup. They hadn't prepared enough for Imego's power. No amount of preparation would have been enough. Power such as his was simply far to terrifying to behold. But Apollo was determined to hold the line. With Hyperion and Ajax off fighting elsewhere, the Avengers were down two of their most powerful members.

But that hadn't stopped them. Already Ragna, Strom, and Kairi were stepping up to the plate, drawing on a well of strength that they had never truly known before. With that will and determination, they were able to hold Imego back, to halt his momentum just long enough for the rest of the team to get back on their feet. But it was only a matter of time before the momentum shifted once again in Imego's favor.

A thunderous right hook signaled that shift as Imego floored Apollo. He slashed down with the Twilight Sword, and Apollo just barely managed to grab the blade's edge and keep it from cutting right through him. Still, he wouldn't be able to hold the blade back forever: eventually Imego would cut him down.

Genesis wasn't about to allow that.

He rocked Imego with an earth-shaking punch. Genesis hacked and slashed with the Dragon Soul Sword, chipping away at Imego's armor. He drove him away from Apollo and the others and then, with a roar, summoned the eight dragons of thunder to pin Imego to the ground. Genesis wasted no time. He leapt onto Imego and raised his sword. But Imego unleashed his Dragon Howl once again, and Genesis was slammed with a burst of burning draconic energies. And as the might of Imego washed over him. Genesis could only think of one word.

Madness.

=====

Cascades of azure and crimson washed over the sky as Ajax and Gotungir did battle. Their fight had been magnificent, a duel between two knights of the highest caliber, with weapons and power only spoken of in old stories and ancient tomes. Ajax held the slight upper hand in power and strength, while Gotungir had far superior speed...and that was beginning to wear Ajax down. He didn't doubt his ability to achieve victory. He did, however, doubt his ability to achieve victory and then contribute anything at all against Imego. Ajax knew: he had to end the battle now, without wasting any more energy.

And so he took a desperate gamble.

Gotungir flew forward with tremendous speed. It was something Ajax still couldn't comprehend: the sheer velocity with which Gotungir moved blew his mind. However, as Gotungir prepared to charge him, Ajax shed his higher form, returning to his base, MedievalGallantmon form. Gotungir saw this as a sign of weakness and moved to strike with confidence.

Overconfidence.

At the moment Gotungir reached him, Ajax dropped to the ground and swung the Dunas. The weapon clipped Gotungir's legs, striking them just below the knees, and the sheer speed with which he moved insured that his legs were completely severed. The blue dragon crashed to the ground, trying desperately to crawl away from Ajax and escape. But it was too late. There was no escape, not from the ultimate dragon slayer.

"Mercy," Gotungir begged. "Please have mercy."

"Oh, I have mercy," said Ajax as he rasied his lance. "Just not for you." The weapon fell.

Ajax turned, his eyes wandered over the battlefield as he searched for his warriors, his Avengers. A cry of absolute agony caught his attention. He turned just in time to see Hyperion relieve Goliath of his Darkdra-arm. The cannon fell to the ground with a thud. Another quick exchange of sword strikes, and Goliath's Bancho-arm joined its twin on the ground. Ajax watched stoically as Hyperion drove the Transcendent Sword into Goliath's chest, and with a roar, obliterated him with the Supreme Cannon.

Hyperion: damaged, broken, burned, and bloody, dropped to his knees. He and Goliath had been equals in power and skill. Only Hyperion's sheer savagery and rage was able to push him over the edge to victory. And now that victory was achieved, Hyperion had nothing left in him. He collapsed forward, supporting himself on one arm.

"GO!" he urged Ajax. The knight nodded: the Avengers needed him. Drawing once again upon the ancient magics that transformed him, Ajax donned the Crimson Mode and rushed off into battle.

=====

It was a terrible sight that greeted Ajax when he arrived. Arahon lay broken and beaten, four Olympians were dead, and Apollo was impaled on Imego's sword, and Imego continued to attack even before Apollo had completely dissipated. He swung his weapon with savagery and quickly decapitated Artemis as well. The twins died together on Imego's sword. Sun and moon forever sealed by twilight.

But the cost of facing the six Olympians and the combined might of the Avengers was taking its toll: Ajax could plainly see. Imego favored his left arm: it had sustained significant damage. His wings were torn and no longer the elegant wings that defined the Imperialdramon species. If the Avengers were to strike, then now was the time.

"Avengers assemble!" Ajax called out as he swooped down. He slashed his weapons, holy Gungnir and Blutgang, across Imego's back just as Genesis slashed his own sword across Imego's chest. Imego roared his rage. He lashed out, smashing Genesis into the ground and blasting Ajax from the sky. He channeled his power into the Twilight Sword.

But something happened: something flew through the air and lodged itself in Imego's right arm, forcing him to drop the Twilight Sword. It was the Holy Sword Grade Alpha.

"Digitalize of Souls!" Arahon shouted. A monster of burning green digital energy exploded from his hand and slammed into Imego. It carried him through the air and away from the fallen Twilight Sword. It was a desperate move, and it was Arahon's last act of defiance before he lost consciousness.

"Now!" Ajax cried out. "Hit him with everything you've got!" Ajax condensed both of his mighty weapons into a single sphere of holy light. "Crimson Light!" The blast of divine power plowed into Imego and seared straight to his infernal core.

"Celestial Blade!" Genesis shouted. He assembled the Zero ARMS Orochi and drew the mighty blade. He swung it with all his might and slashed straight through Imego.

"Now, Avengers!"

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

"BREATH OF WYVERN!" he roared, cloaking his body in the azure aurora before channelling the power into Wyrmflame. "DRAGON THROWER!" His claws took on a crimson aura before that too was sent into Wyrmflame.

He would end Imego with this, the sword of the brighter future.

He took flight, azure and crimson flame dancing around his body and the Digimon Kana burning bright on Wyrmflame as he turned and dived towards Imego, drawing the blade back to strike...

Imego growled and pulled the Holy Sword Grade Alpha out of his body, raising the blood-stained blade to meet Ragna's charge.

"EXA CRUSHER!" he roared, opening the dragon mouth set in his chest plate and forming a crackling sphere of darkness before firing it at the dragon knight.

"Draconis Flame!" Ragna called, swinging Wyrmflame in a deadly arc. His blade struck the Exa Crusher and the attacks pushed agaisnt each other. Ragna roared in anger and forced all of his power into the attack, drawing on every ounce of strength he had.

There was a shift in the balance.

Imego gasped as, with a roar, Ragna forced the Exa Crusher away and back towards its creator.

"Impossible!" the Imperialdramon Kaiser yelled a second before the blast engulfed him.

Ragna continued to hurtle downwards, Digimon Kana on Wyrmflame shining with the intensity of the sun as he readied the blade to stab Imego through the Digi-Core.

The smoke from the explosion cleared, revealing a blackened and burned Imego.

But even in his weakened state, Imego was a formidible opponent.

Ragna roared once more, knowing this would be his last chance...

Behind Imego, Osiris stood, charging dark energies into his ultimate Dark Roar. This had to be ended now, before Imego could unleash Gog and Magog.

"Dark Roar!" the God of Death roared, unleashing a terrible and powerful blast of pure darkness from his maw, the roar of its passage the howling rage of hundreds of souls, the newly killed Olympians and Valdor now among them.

As the sword struck, Osiris's attack exploded against Imego's back. The paladin screamed as flames and darkness tore into him, ripping him apart. For one second, the universe called for him and once more the whole of creation was visible to his eyes.

But Imego would not end.

"NO!" he roared "I defy this!" So saying, he lashed out with a vicious punch, hurling Ragna away, but leaving Wyrmflame lodged into his Digi-Core.

Before the flames coating the blade could damage him further, he weakly pulled it loose. Osiris let out a terrible roar of anger and hurled himself forwards, but Imego turned and unleashed his Dragon Howl at point blank range, the sanguine energy hurling Osiris away, although the Obsidian Digizoid armour coating the AncientSphinxmon prevented serious damage.

Imego turned back to Ragna, who was growling as he weakly stood. Imego tossed the Grade Alpha to his opponent.

"Let's end this," he growled, raising Wyrmflame as Ragna readied the Grade Alpha.

There was a pregnant second, then the two leapt at each other.

The two swords crashed together, creating a spray of sparks as Ragna channelled his Breath of Wyvern into the Grade Alpha sword. Imego responded by drawing on the power of Wyrmflame forcibly, and a terrible shriek of pain rent the air.

Valra's scream.

"YOU *******!" Ragna roared, slashing wildly with the Grade Alpha. Imego was forced to react with lightning speed to prevent being impaled.

Something told him he wouldn't survive another impalment through the Digi-Core.

The two blades crashed together at lightning speed as the two warriors leapt into the air. Imego unleashed his Dragon Howl, but Ragna spun the Grade Alpha, focusing his Breath of Wyvern and Dragon Thrower into it and blocking even the Sovereign level power of Imego's attack.

The two launched themselves at each other, blades crashing together with the force of meteor impacts. Both weapons shivered under the impact, but held.

Once more the two unleashed volleys of lightning fast strikes, channelling incredible power into the two swords. Grade Alpha met Wyrmflame in explosions of draconic energy and bursts of brilliant light.

Ragna gripped the Grade Alpha with both hands and brought it down in a flaming strike, only to have the blow blocked by Wyrmflame once more. Imego lashed out with his free fist, catching Ragna in a vicious right hook to the face. The Dynasmon roared in pain as his helmet was dented, sharp edges tearing into his flesh.

Then Imego unleashed a lethal kick, striking Ragna in the stomach and tearing a howl of agony from the Avenger's lips.

"You could hammer a hundred strikes into me and I would endure!" the Kaiser boasted "yet you fall with one strike!"

"You hit me twice, jack..." Ragna began, before Imego brought Wyrmflame down in a vicious strike that Ragna barely blocked. He twisted and slashed at Imego, but the dark paladin took the blow on his bracer. Another vicious kick struck Ragna, but the Dynasmon forced himself to keep fighting, despite the pain.

The two swords crashed together over and over again, unleashing shockwaves of unimaginable power through the air.

Ragna swung the Grade Alpha in a great diagonal arc, while simultaneously kicking out at Imego's sword arm. The paladin roared in pain and dropped Wyrmflame, letting the Grade Alpha rip across his chest from shoulder to hip.

The screams of pain that this blow created were unmatchable. Imego howled as Ragna's draconic power, channeled through the Grade Alpha, seared into his body with devastating effect.

However, the Kaiser Mode resisted, blocking the deletion of Imego's body and keeping him together.

Ragna cursed and swung the Grade Alpha again, but Imego kicked out again, hurling the Dynasmon away and making him drop the Grade Alpha. The sword fell to the earth below and Ragna growled, spreading his claws out.

This would be hand to hand, then. He had to end the battle quickly. He was far too badly wounded for a prolonged battle.

Imego knew that too, he dived at Ragna, unleashing a mighty Exa Crusher. The Dynasmon hurled himself aside and the blast exploded against the ocean instead. Imego lashed out with a fist, but Ragna blocked it with all his strength, crushing Imego's hand with his talons. The Imperialdramon roared in pain and Ragna kicked him away. His eyes frantically sarched for Wyrmflame or the Grade Alpha...

He saw Wyrmflame, impaled into a hill from the force of its fall. He dived for it, wondering why Imego didn't simply blast at him.

It took him ten seconds to reach the blade and wrench it from the earth below. He raised Wyrmflame, purfiying flames spreading along its length and cleaning it, making it shine like the sun as the Digimon Kana on it burned with energy.

"FOR THE FUTURE!" Ragna roared, taking flight. Imego was nowhere to be seen...

Then Ragna saw him. Imego had gone for one thing: the Twilight Sword.

So it would be Wyrmflame against the Twilight Sword, in one last battle.

Ragna charged at Imego as the paladin ascended. Both channelled all of their power into their swords before raising them for one final strike.

"DRACONIS FLAME!"

"TWILIGHT SWORD!"

The two blades met with an apocalyptic force, the shockwave ripping at the ocean below and forming a crater in the water before it faded and the sea splashed back.

Wyrmflame burned with white flame, as the Twilight Sword was burning with black fire. The two weapons strained against each other, neither gaining the other hand.

"This is the end!" Ragna growled "you end today, Imego! With Valra's spirit in this blade and her wishes inscribed on its edge, I will prevail!"

"Your lover is gone! She cannot help you defeat me!"

"Let's test that theory, shall we?! DRACONIS FLAME!" The flames on Wyrmflame burned brighter as Ragna channelled every single bit of power he had left into it.

The Twilight Sword cracked. Cracks started to run along its edge...

"NO!" Imego roared "I AM ETERNAL! I AM A GOD!"

"Nothing is eternal," Ragna stated "no one is a god. You end now."

Once more, the failing power of the Kaiser Mode gave rise to a vision of every action ever made, every decision taken...

And once again, Imego refused.

"I DEFY YOU!" he howled "I AM A GOD! TWILIGHT SWORD!"

In a rush of incredible power, the runes on the Twilight Sword seemed to explode with dark fire. Ragna felt every ounce of power he had poured in Wyrmflame being hurled back into him as a tide of dark fire that seared into his flesh.

Wyrmflame dimmed, then the flames on the blade were overwhelmed and it was swept aside.

The sword fell and Imego slashed it thorugh Ragna's body. The Dynasmon couldn't resist, he was consumed by the dark flames Imego wielded and his form burned.

He didn't scream. He forced himself to focus. He would die.

But he could take Imego with him.

He saw Valra's face.

"I'll be with you soon, my love," he gasped through the pain "but first, there is one last task to perform. DRACONIS FLAME!"

Wyrmflame ignited once more as Valra's spirit burned bright within it, Ragna pouring the last dregs of his power into this, his last act...

With all his might, he thrust Wyrmflame forwards, impaling Imego through the Digi-Core. Pure white flame exploded into being, searing through the dark paladin.

"NO!" Imego screamed as the charged force of Ragna and Valra's spirits burst forth in an unstoppable force, engulfing his form.

The Kaiser Mode was broken. Imego barely endured, despite every attempt by his Sovereign Level power to heal the damage. The pure flames of light seared through him in a blaze of destruction beyond anything he had ever felt before...

And Ragna let out one last breath, forcing himself upwards, above Imego.

"AVENGERS!" he gasped "END HIM FOR ME! I STARTED THE FUTURE, NOW YOU MUST MOVE TOWARDS IT! All of you... TOWARDS OUR FUTURE!"

The black flames exploded, ripping his data apart in a force of Imego's rage. But as he died, Ragna smiled. His spirit was still alive, and Valra was beside him once again...

Osiris saw Ragna die and his soul seemed to scream.

"Ragna..." he said in disbelief. It couldn't be... not another Avenger dead...

"NO MORE!" the God of Death roared "NO MORE! RAGNA, I WILL AVENGE YOU AND MAKE US ALL A BRIGHT FUTURE!"

(OOC: That was the hardest scene to write, Ragna's death. I utterly cried writing it. Ragna's my favorite character, and I just killed him! By the way, one request. Can someone, whoever ends up killing Imego, take Wyrmflame from the body as a sort of reminder? Just a small request.)

The sky cracked and burned. The air was set aflame. The sea boiled and rolled. The little islands quaked. Imego remained standing, Ragna's blade still pierced through his core. His armor was cracked, his wings were torn. He was battered and broken, bloody and beaten. But still he remained defiant. As the universe opened itself to Imego, ready to embrace him in finality, he still refused. He spit into the heart of creation.

He pulled Ragna's sword from his chest and hurled the blade away. He held the Twilight Sword in his hand and raised it high with a roar. Light exploded from the blade, spiraling down its edge and burying itself within Imego. It began to mend his wounds, to stitch him back together from the brink. Imego stared at his empty hand as power sparked across his fingers.

"What a fool I've been," Imego chuckled. "I've been fighting you all as a mere Digimon when I should have been fighting you as a god." His eyes sparked with power, and a nearby island lifted into the air. It was suddenly set ablaze and dropped onto the Avengers. It was a veritable meteor, searing the sky and sea as it fell, aching to completely annihilate the Avengers.

But a massive beam of power stopped the island-meteor in its tracks. Power raged against power, cracking the island-meteor and then blowing it apart. Great, burning boulders fell from the sky, forcing the Avengers to take evasive action, but it was much preferred to the alternative. Hyperion let his cannon arm drop, too exhausted to even hold up his hand. And then he fell forward, too.

"Hmmm. So be it," Imego mused. He raised the Twilight Sword and the world began to delete around him. Earth, sea, and sky simply flashed in and out of existence, coinciding with the flashes of light emanated by the Twilight Sword.

"Ragnarok!" Imego roared. He brought the Twilight Sword down with tremendous force and stuck against the earth. Power followed power, ripping outwards as never before. Ajax felt himself swallowed by the attack, felt it sear against him, straight to the core. It smothered them, burned them, ripped into them as pure primal energies tore across the unsuspecting face of the Digital World. The world broke, and as it did, so did the final seals.

Two beings took their first breaths in eons.

Imego lifted into the air, roaring with laughter. Before him the Avengers lay defeated, scattered upon the ground. Not a single one of them had the might needed to stand against his power. Arcane power danced across his body. He was a god. The world was his to do with as he pleased.

Something moved under the earth and sea, just below the surface. With a roar, a massive hand stretched out of the ocean. It was followed by an equally massive head and body. The great monster Magog rose from the ocean's depths with a terrifying roar. From the sky, a golden meteor fell. It passed through the outer layers of the Digital World and came to stop just over the battlefield, just above Magog. The meteor began to shift and expand as Gog revealed himself.

"They are the ancient monsters, the primordial terrors Anubis Teth-Adam warned us about: Gog and Magog," said Arahon. "Or as you might call them...Apocalymon and Milleniummon."

"No!" shouted Imego. "This is my world. You slobbering beasts cannot have it. I will not allow you to-!"

Gog and Magog turned to Imego with murder in their eyes and unleashed such beams of power from them. Imego was atomized in an instant, his data scattered over the battlefield without so much more than a glance from the two monsters. They chuckled darkly to themselves before turning to each other. Power exploded between them as monster battled monster far out over the sea. Whatever power Imego held was made insignificant by comparison.

The end had come...

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

Osiris almost laughed at the irony of the whole thing. Imego was destroyed by the very creatures he had unwillingly released.

But now they had a much much bigger problem than Imego.

"So we trade one foe for two far greater," he murmured, watching Gog and Magog battle, each attack an apocalyptic force. Even the great bursts of power unleashed by Ragna and Imego's final battle paled in comparison to these attacks.

"How do we defeat them?" he whispered, watching Magog unleash bursts of power from his gaping maw. The Milleniummon launched a black orb, his Time Unlimited.

"There has to be a way to reseal them," said Ajax. "There's no way we can beat them, not at their level of power. But they were sealed before; they can be sealed again, right? Arahon, what stopped them the last time they were freed?"

"I don't know," Arahon whispered. "The Alpha-Gain Force is silent."

"Well, think!" Ajax urged. "You know more about the myths and legends of the Digital World than anyone else! Who could have stopped them?"

"At their level of power, only Ouroboros could have stopped them," said Arahon. "And only with the help of the other for Sovereign."

"But the other Sovereign are gone," said Genesis. "We are all that's left."

"Then we'll have to be enough," declared Ajax. "Arahon, summon the Ultimate War Blade and try to figure out how to seal these evil bast*rds away. Avengers, we need to buy Arahon some time. Let's show these cosmic a**holes what we can do."

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

Osiris knew that even if Strom and Gapsar's efforts were probably pointless, they were their best chance at stalling Gog and Magog for any length of time.

The two were colossal, titans with power beyond belief. Osiris had already watched them wipe out Imego in a second, after even Ragna impaling the Paladin through the Digi-Core with Wyrmflame hadn't done the job!

Osiris noticed Strom was now holding the blade. He had seen Ragna start to strike up a friendship with the Spinomon and knew that Strom had to be feeling almost as wretched as he did.

They had all lost something when Rai, Karasu, Ragna and Valra had fallen. They had lost fragments of the team, parts of a collective whole. Maybe they hadn't been the closest of friends, but they had shared something, the desire to avenge those Imego harmed.

Now four pieces of the great collective were gone. And perhaps it was Ragna and Valra who were most sorely missed. The two lovers had been a comfort, in some way, reminding the others that war wasn't everything in their lives. Ragna and Valra had forged a bond that should have endured beyond the war.

Instead, both of their lives had been brutally cut short by Imego.

Maybe the Paladin had gone. But now, the need to fight was stronger than ever.

Ragna's words resounded through him: "Towards our future."

There were two paths forward, one where Gog and Magog were sealed, the other where they destroyed the world. Osiris knew which one was the right one.

"DARK ROAR!" he called, feeling the spirits of the dead with him. They too knew what had to be done, giving him more power to save the living. He felt Ragna and Valra most of all, alongside Rai and Karasu, those he knew.

The sphere of crackling darkness shot from his maw, tearing through the air and exploding against Apocalymon. The golden and purple planetoid sized form of his lower body took the hit without even shaking. The primoridial terror growled in irritation, as if the powerful blast was nothing more than an insect bite to a being of its scale and power.

Gog the Apocalymon was furious. All he wanted was to battle his eternal nemesis, Magog the Millenuimmon, and the puny Digimon annoyances simply irritated him. He had spent countless eons locked away with nothing but the thoughts of destruction to occupy his time with. Gog would realize all his terrible dreams. He would crush Magog and raze the entire Digital World. But first he had to take care of those nuisances. He raised his hand and pointed it out over the world.

"Reverse Digivolve," he whispered. It was a whisper that cracked the air and thundered through the sky. His power and voice coursed through the Avengers, forcing them all to de-digivolve and revert to their rookie forms. Only Arahon managed to avoid the attack as he was protected by the power of Fanglongmon.

Ajax fell to the ground, reduced to his Guilmon form. Onaga and Valkur followed, as Flamemon and Strabimon, respectively. They crashed hard, shaken with having their power ripped away so forcefully. They stood on the scorched earth as Gog and Magog continued to battle. Ironically, the safest place was where they were standing. Miles away, the sea burst into flames, the earth melted, and the sky rained fire. The mere presence of these two monsters was warping the very fabric of the digital world.

And only Arahon stood in their way. As powerful as he was with the Ultimate War Blade at his disposal, he still couldn't hope to defeat even one of the monsters. His only chance was to tap the powers of Fanglongmon and use them to seal Gog and Magog once more. But it had to be done in one shot. If he only managed to seal one of the beasts, the other would catch on and Arahon wouldn't get a second chance. Even one monster could ravage the Digital World for years without end.

"How?" Arahon wondered hopelessly. "How can I possible do this on my own?"

"You're not on your own," Ajax declared. He and the rest of the rookies walked over to the black knight. "We're here to help you."

"No," Arahon protested. "They could kill you with a word, a gesture, or a glance. I won't let you walk into your doom." Arahon turned and launched himself into the air. He swung his sword with all his might. The attack only served the seriously annoy Magog, who lashed out, blasting at Arahon with his deadly cannons. Arahon was forced to take evasive action, and realized with dread, that the monster was merely toying with him.

He suddenly found himself snared in one of Gog's metal claws. For the moment, the two primordial terrors were working together, toying with their prey. Arahon was held just above Magog's open maw as power coalesced between the monster's teeth and he prepared to destroy the black knight.

A pair of mighty cannon blasts struck Magog and drew his attention from Arahon. The monster turned his deadly gaze upon Hyperion, but the white knight met the death glare without flinching. He let out a roar, drew his sword, and charged.

"Off me!" Arahon shouted. He broke free of Gog's grip and rushed forward to attack the beast's true body, the torso that emerged from the top of the polyhedron. This forced Gog to move and defend himself, and that's when Arahon saw his opening. As Magog toyed with Hyperion, Arahon made his move. He swung the Ultimate War Blade with all his might and struck Gog's polyhedron shell. The force of the swing sent the great monster flying through the air and crashing right into Magog. Magog was forced to drop Hyperion and turned on Gog in a rage.

They locked in a deadly embrace. Magog's mighty hands gripped at the golden polyhedron and grasped Gog's true body tightly. Gog's metal claws clamped down hard on Magog's neck arms and body just as tightly. Each tried to rip the life from the other.

"Yellow Circle!" Arahon cried out. But this time, instead of the circle surrounding him, it surrounded the two monsters, locking them in place. "Tai Chi!" Power ripped from the edge of the Ultimate War Blade and washed over the two monsters. It circled around them, completely wrapping them in a cascade of divine energies.

Arahon spoke, the words came to him instinctively as the power reacted to them. "With this ring I bind your spirits. I seal you where you stand. And like drawing poison from a wound, I cast you from this land!"

The power ripped inwards, crushing both Gog and Magog into one another. It folded upon itself infinitely, and the two beasts roared roars of complete and utter agony, the roars of being completely unmade. Then the light began to fade, leaving nothing behind.

No. There was something.

"This isn't right!" Arahon shouted. "They aren't supposed to still be here. Nothing should be left! What the hell is that?!"

It was a single blue crystal, though a darkness flowed somewhere within it. The distortions around the Digital World had lessened, but the monsters still existed. They watched angrily with glowing red eyes. The eyes then glanced out over the sea, to where a group of Digimon floated on wreckage of some great structure. The beast, the Gog-Magog Entity leveled a glare at them, and power ripped from the crystal. It crashed into the unsuspecting Digimon and atomized them.

"They must not be allowed to continue!" Arahon shouted. "Fanglongmon, grant me strength!" He raised the Ultimate War Blade and brought it down on the crystal with all his might. Power cascaded out in all directions, drenching the sky with light. When the light faded, a long crack ran down the length of the crystal. The Gog-Magog Entity turned his rage back to the Arahon...and blasted him with a bolt of cosmic power from point-blank range.

Arahon roared in agony. The bolt ripped through him, tearing his form away. He dropped to the ground in a smoking heap: no longer Alphamon, Grademon, or Raptordramon. He was but a simple Dorumon. Weak and helpless. Ajax and the Rookie Avengers rushed to Arahon's side, but the Gog-Magog Entity again unleashed a terrible blast of power.

But it was blocked.

Hyperion stood over his comerades as the bolt of power continued to pound against the blade of the Transcendent Sword. Hyperion strained against the unrelenting onslaught of cosmic might, but broken and beaten as he was, he was no match for the power. As he fought to deflect the attack, it actually deflected him and sent him flying through the air. A second bolt of power followed. It pierced right through Hyperion's chest.

The white knight fell to the ground, utterly exhausted and wounded like never before.

"Why didn't he de-digivolve with the rest of us?" Onaga wondered.

"He can't," Ajax reminded. "When he was forced to become Omnimon, the evolution was permenant. But he can't help us anymore. We're on our own."

"That crack in the crystal!" Valkur shouted. "That thing seemed awfully ****** when Arahon did that to him. Let's hit him with everything we've got!"

"You can call yourself whatever you want.
Soldier. Leader. Patriot. Revolutionary. It doesn't matter.
At our core we're all the same thing.
Monsters."

(Today's warning: When sealing away primordial terrors Apocalymon and Milleniummon by combining Tai Chi and Yellow Circle, be warned there is a high chance of forced Digivolution to Moon-Milleniummon!)

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Osiris, now a lone, pathetic Labramon thanks to Gog's Reverse Digivolve, barked as he saw the terrfiying combination of the terrors. Gog-Magog was huge, a single crystal containing swirling darkness.

"We hit them with all our power," he growled "and all they do is spit in our faces and Digivolve to something stronger!"

This was something new. He had merely assumed that they would stay in their base Apocalymon and Milleniummon forms, but now they had become this new being.

Still, they had to fight. That was their only hope. Even without the power of his Ancient form, he still had power, as they all did.

All they had to do was believe.

He stepped towards Gog-Magog, letting out a fierce bark. The god-Digimon regarded him with disinterest, instead keeping much of its attention focused on Hyperion, who was still at Mega Level and therefore, still much of a threat.

"Retribark!" Osiris called, unleashing a sonic burst from his mouth that struck the crack created by Arahon's Ultimate Warblade King Dragon Sword. The blast certainly didn't hurt Gog-Magog, but it did irritate the god.

"DEATH CRYSTAL!" Gog-Magog spoke, the words resonating as if it had roared. Energy flashed within the crystal encasing its form, before a flurry of dark crystalline shards burst from it, tearing into the land and sea, several shards narrowly missing Osiris.